Art of Crystal Cards
by 4fireking
Summary: Yuma's day was going well since he decided not to duel anyone. What he didn't expect was his deck being borrowed by the new kid Shin. Shin is the most annoying person Yuma's ever talked to. But Shin is more than meets the eyes. Him and his brother have special cards of their own besides the Number cards. And their having their own little fight...in a group searching for the twelve.
1. Chapter 1

**I had problems creating this story. I didn't get very far watching the show Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal. I brainstormed a story making a tournament where everyone competes, but that didn't sound very interesting. Being a fanfiction I have to start by letting everyone know the main character's in it. I hope this first chapter clears up a Zexal fanfiction to other Yu-Gi-Oh fanfiction. **

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Yuma Tsukumo was having lunch outside. Today he didn't feel like playing against anyone, not to say he wouldn't lose, just wanted to chillax on such a beautiful day and enjoy his lunch. A tiny morsel of rice was stuck on Yuma's cheek. There was no Astral to make fun of him, no Tori, and no Tetsuo. Just a perfect day.

All that happiness ended the moment he showed up. Yuma didn't know much about him other than he liked Duel Monsters. Yuma saw him with a Duel Gazer but never saw him duel with his own deck. Yuma probably wouldn't mind him if he didn't ask Yuma to borrow his deck.

" Can I borrow your deck again?"

" No," Yuma said.

Yuma accidentally choked on his rice ball. Yuma put his hands over his throat trying to spit it out. Yuma couldn't do it. He needed help from the boy even do he didn't want it. The boy grabbed Yuma's stomach and pushed into his stomach. Yuma spat a giant chunk of not swallowed rice ball projectile out.

" Hey Yuma..." Ironically after saving Yuma's life the boy snatched his deck out of his deck box and dashed away. " Taking your deck. Bye."

Yuma cursed how crappy his day was going. What should have been a perfect day ended with Yuma choking and having his deck snatched. Astral was staring blankly at Yuma making a fool of himself.

" I don't believe you."

* * *

What is amiss about Shin Matsuda. He carried an empty deck box with him wherever he goes. Shin loves playing Duel Monsters but wasn't allowed to play it. At least he wasn't allowed to build his own deck until he turned thirteen. Shin was already thirteen years old, but his birthday ritual wasn't until midnight today.

Shin caught up to his opponent. Shin knew this man. He faced him once and he came back wanting to fight him again.

" Took you long enough," his opponent said bluntly.

" Sorry to keep you waiting. But I'll make it worth your while with an old classy dueling."

Shin: 4000

?: 4000

Shin and his opponent activated their Duel Gazers. They were witnessing what true Duel World animation was about. Shin saw a duel happening not so far away between a dragon and an orange ape. He glanced at the right and noticed a sparrow knight with a long saber slice through a Aztec statue; a fat kid playing the monster and a ten year old covering his eyes from the pixels.

" Rock-paper-scissors?" Shin asked.

" Rock-paper-scissor," his opponent replied.

Shin and his opponent tied first with rock. Shin and him tied next with paper. Shin won the third round when he used scissors and Shin used rock. Shin got to go first, he picked a card from the top of Yuma's deck and played it.

" I summon Goblindbergh in Attack Mode (1400/0)." A blue portal opened in the middle zone. A small orange plane whizzed out of the blue portal. Flying the plane was a green goblin wearing goggles and an oversized brown coat. " When Goblindbergh is Normal Summon I can special summon a monster level four or lower in my hand, defense position. I summon Rai Rider (1200/1400)."

Shin picked another monster from his hand and placed it sideways beside Goblindbergh. A blue portal opened in the right zone. A three headlight motorcycle accelerated from the blue portal. His face was masked by a black mask and blue helmet. Sticking out of his back was wild red hair.

" I set one card facedown and end my turn." A facedown card appeared in the middle behind Goblindbergh.

His opponent drew one card. " I Normal Summon Goblin Elite Attack Force (2200/1500)." A blue portal opened in the opponent's middle zone. Cladded in silver armor were goblins the exact same color as Goblindbergh. " Goblin Elite Attack Force get his Goblindbergh."

The Goblin Elite Attack Force charged towards Shin's monster. They almost impaled their spears through Goblindbergh's stomach. Shin activated a facedown. When the facedown was activated Rai Rider moved in front of Goblindbergh to defend him.

" I activate Guts Guard. When a monster on my side of the field is targeted for an attack I can change the target to another monster on my field and it cannot be destroyed by battle."

Goblin Elite Attack Force spears bounced off Rai Rider's motorcycle. The goblins returned to the opponents' side of the field and kneeled down. When Goblin monsters attacked their battle positions changed at the end of the damage step.

" _Yuma doesn't have many strong monsters in his deck. Most of his cards rely on Xyz summons. I refuse to play any of his Xyz monsters. But I have the advantage."_

" I set two cards facedown." Two facedown cards were revealed behind the opponent. " I end my turn."

Shin drew another card from his deck bringing his grand total to four. " I Normal Summon Gogogo Golem in Attack Mode (1800/800)._" _A blue portal appeared on the left side of Shin's field. A rock golem with one red eye jump out.

" Chain." His opponent flipped a card on his right side up. " Robbin' Goblin. Every time a monster on my field inflicts damage to you, you randomly lose a card in your hand."

" Then it's a good thing you don't have a monster strong enough to hurt me. Gogogo Golem attack Goblin Elite Attack Force!"

Gogogo Golem charged towards Goblin Elite Attack Force. His feet broke through the concrete ramming into Goblin Elite Attack Force. Shin could win. He had Blustering Winds, Ego Boost , and Mirror Mail.

" You walked into my trap. Trap activates, Final Attack Orders." Goblin Elite Attack Force stood up again. Shin trembled in fear. He walked into a trap. Gogogo punch Goblin Elite Attack Force, but the elite team jabbed their spears through Gogogo Golem's tiles and he exploded from the inside.

" The key to winning a duel is using cards that help our monsters flaws. And I perfectly executed my plan. Robbin' Goblin will slash a card."

Shin wasn't prepared for what happened next. A tiny green goblin appeared on his opponent's right shoulder. The goblin threw a knife towards Shin's hand. His knife ripped through Mirror Mail. Shin had two cards, two monsters both weaker than Goblin; Rai Raider switched to Attack Mode, and next turn his opponent would destroy them.

" _I cannot lose this way. I need to Xyz summon. I'm sorry father, but using him is inconsequential. I must win this match." _


	2. Chapter 2

**After taking some time to decide which chapters I would add in my stories and I chose to add this one. I like to keep my chapters short but no less than one thousand words. **

* * *

It was Shin's opponents turn. He drew a card from his deck. Shin hoped his opponent didn't have a card that would destroy his face downs because he needed them when his opponent attacked. " I summon Goblin Attack Force (2300/0)."

A blue portal appeared beside the Goblin Elite Attack Force. Goblin Attack Force was filled with green goblins just like Goblin Elite Attack Force. The goblins in Goblin Attack Force were wearing construction hats and wore a yellow jacket covering their purple shirts. The Goblin Attack Force carried bludgeons.

" Goblin Elite Attack Force, attack his Rai Rider!" Goblin Elite Attack Force pound their grotesque green hands against their silver armor. The Goblin Elite Attack Force raised their spears and threw them at Rai Rider. Rai Rider was visceral when it came to taking damage. He tried dodging the bombardment driving to the left and right. He made one wrong move and their spears impaled him. Rai Rider dispersed from the duel field. " Now Goblin Attack Force, attack his Goblindbergh!"

Stranger: 4000

Shin: 2600

If Goblin Attack Force destroyed Goblindbergh Shin would be defenceless. If the next card he drew was a Spell or Trap card he would lose. If the monster's defence was less than 2400 he would be dead. That was the thing about playing a card game; strategy, luck, and timing were needed to make a good strategy. Goblin Attack Force struck Goblindbergh. Goblin Attack force shattered on contact.

Stranger: 3900

Shin: 2600

" What happened?" The stranger freaked and jerked his head to his Duel Disk. The gauge read 3900. " How could my monster possibly be beaten? It had more attack points than yours?"

" Hehehehe." Shin snickered at the duelists confusion. " Kwahahaha! I just used a little quick-Spell called Ego Boost. When a monster on my side of the field is attacked my monster gains 1000 ATK points."

" You saying your monster got 1000 extra attack points?"

" That's right. And in case your bad at Math that gave my Goblindbergh 2400 ATK points. So your 2300 Goblin Attack Force didn't stand a chance."

" Your spell only temporarily boosts your monsters attack points, and by the end of this turn that power boost will fade. My Goblin Attack Force will return and he will destroy your monsters. And since my Final Attack Orders is still in play, you cannot defend yourself. I end my turn."

Shin drew his destiny card. His destiny would let him know if he was destined to win this duel or not. He needed a Level 4 monster if he wanted to perform his Xyz Summon. Shin took a deep breath so he wouldn't be so nervous and drew the top card of his deck.

" Yes. I Summon Gagaga Magician (1500/1000)." A blue portal appeared beside Goblindbergh. Shin didn't know if Gagaga Magician was Dark Magician's son, grandson, great-grandson, or his protégé. He wore clothes similar to Dark Magician with his hat tipped and a bandana covering his mouth. " I'm going to show you an Xyz monster you've never seen before. I use my level four Goblindbergh and my level four Gagaga Magician to summon East Beast Holden!"

Goblindbergh and Gagaga Magician turned from monsters into two orange balls orbiting around the monster about to be formed. The monster Shin summoned was a bat-vulture hybrid. It's head and wings were those of a bat, the rest of his body were ruffled yellow feathers. Its serpent eyes looked at Shin's opponents. The opponent looked at Shin's monsters attack points and laughed.

" It has zero attack points! You wasted two very good defences for this worthless monster. It's too bad you can't defend from my Final Attack Orders."

Shin snickered. His opponent looked in concern furrowed an eyebrow. " My plan was never to use Holden to defend. He has a very rare ability. I end my turn."

The opponent drawn one card from the top of his deck. Something was wrong. His opponent didn't waver from certainty when he achieved that useless Xyz monster.

" _It must be his face down. He's using that monster to mock me, and he will use Mirror Force. He won't be laughing when I destroy his Mirror Force." _His opponent summoned another Goblin monster to his side of the field. The goblins were black ops operative with assassin weapons. " I play Mystical Space Typhoon. I can destroy one Spell or Trap card on the field."

A blue cyclone moved through the field and ripped through Shin's Spell card. Blustering Winds was destroyed by his opponents' card. The only card left on Shin's field was his Xyz monster. However, Shin looked at his opponent with a sneaky snicker.

" My mother was the matriarch of this deck. She told me in order to win a duel you had to think more steps ahead than your opponent, use perfect strategies, and always have a good counter."

" Tell your mother I don't care. I play the Warrior Returning Alive. I return one Warrior-type monster from my Graveyard into my hand." Goblin Attack Force popped out of his opponents Graveyard. His opponent added that card to his hand. " Next comes my Spell card Double Summon. Once during this duel I can summon another monster from my hand. I summon Goblin Attack Force (2300/0)."

Shin's opponent field was three dangerous goblins. Each one laughed menacing at Shin's weak attack point monster. Shin's monster stared at them uneasy.

" I attack directly with Goblin Black Ops (1300/0)."

The team of black ops goblins disappeared in a flash. They appeared in front of Shin. Their blades cut through Shin's stomach. The pain was only virtually.

Shin: 1300

Opponent: 3900

Shin's opponent could feel victory glimmer in his eyes like hope. After that last humiliating defeat from Shin, his opponent was going to show Shin who the alpha duelist was.

" Goblin Attack Force, destroy his monster and finish him!"

Goblin Attack Force jumped towards Shin's monster and hit his bludgeon directly into his head. Goblin Attack Force should have wiped Shin's monster and plummet his Life Points to zero. Goblin Attack Force really destroyed his orb and Shin's Life Points didn't drop any lower.

" My East Beast Holden's special ability: when it would be destroyed I can remove a xyz material from him to negate his destruction and the damage I take is zero. After I take the damage, I can draw one card." Shin drew the top card of his deck. He found the card he needed. All he needed to do was draw one more card and his strategy would be complete. " Go ahead. Will you attack again knowing your next attack is pointless? You would probably finish me off next with that Goblin Black Ops, but are you sure you want me to keep Holden?"


	3. Chapter 3

**This chapter was written by 4fireking and 90sboy. Sorry it took so long to post and be patient because it is going to be edited later. **

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Shin's opponent couldn't deal any damage to Shin. Next turn his Goblin Black Ops would attack him directly and cut off the rest of his Life Points. His opponent had one card. One card against Goblin Attack Force. Even if drew a monster with 2400 he could eliminate with one punch, he had another Goblin Black Ops in his hand. The boy finally smirked and pressed the button to end his turn.

" I end my turn."

Shin drew his card on what could be his last turn. Shin picked up and looked at the card. This card...it was just the card Shin was looking for. And the card Shin drew before it was exactly the card he needed. " I tribute Holden to summon Prowler, the Phoenix of the Green Flames (2400)." The hologram of Holden jumped in the air and was soon engulfed in green flames. Giant wings spanned from his arms. It wasn't Holden's arms that grew; he disintegrated into yellow pieces of data. Shin's monster roared with a shriek that could drown out the sound of five cannons. From the flames a blue bird emblazoned with a yellow crest over his heart, sharp silver talons, an orange beak, a scar that looped around his right eye, and the face of a child; a young girl or boy; over the phoenix's head. It looked at Shin's opponent who was shocked not scared.

" A big chicken. Big deal."

" I know you have another Goblin Black Ops in your hand," Shin said as his opponent's eyes widened in horror. " How do I know? You smiled. You can tell what's in a duelist's hand just from his smile. You might even say it's a mirror for your hand. Oh, and when Prowler is summoned I lose 1000 Life Points." Prowler turned to Shin. His mouth filled with tiny balls of green flames until his mouth was filled, and then he burned Shin with his blaze.

Shin: 300

Opponent: 3900

Shin's opponent chuckled when Shin took damage. " I like your monster already."

" It's true my monster can't beat you on his own. No monster is good enough on it's own. That's why they can use a little help." Shin turned his other card around. It had Prowler with giant yellow wings about to collide into the duel monster Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV8. " It's called Green Light Sright. When I have one thousand or less Life Points, which thanks to your goblins and my Prowler I do, a monster on my side of the field gets 1000 ATK."

" It's true my monster can't beat you on his own. No monster is good enough on it's own. That's why they can use a little help." Shin turned his other card around. It had Prowler with giant yellow wings about to collide into the duel monster Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV8. " It's called Green Light Sright. When I have one thousand or less Life Points, which thanks to your goblins and my Prowler I do, a monster on my side of the field gets 1000 ATK."

Prowler rose into the air with his giant wings glowing white. The Goblin's on the opponents side of the field were scared of Prowler's new strength. " Prowler, take down his Goblin Attack Force."

Prowler dived down into the Goblin Attack Force with great force. He was engulfed in a spiraling ball of yellow light with orange streaks coming out. He pushed those Goblin Attack Force down like bowling pins. And when they fell down they all exploded.

Shin: 300

Opponent: 2300

' _I had no idea he had cards like those,' _Shin's opponent sweated seeing his Goblin Attack Force being destroyed. ' _No matter. Next turn I'll just summon Goblin Black Ops and attack him directly. I'll finally have the victory I've always wanted.' _

Prowler didn't stop with his attack. He looked at Goblin Black Ops with eyes burning with yellow flames. Goblin Black Ops kneeled down at the site of him. Goblin Black Ops did it for a reason not explained to the opponent. Then Goblin Black Ops stood up raising their weapons. Shin couldn't help but laugh seeing Goblin Black Ops standing up.

" I hate to tell you but this this loss is entirely on you. It's your Final Attack Orders fault this is happening. After a monster who was boosted by Green Light Sright attacks and destroys a monster on your side of the field I can switch it to defense mode and attack that monster. And since Final Attack Orders switches all monsters to attack mode...you're going to take major damage."

Prowler attacked Goblin Black Ops the same way he attacked Goblin Attack Force. He flew to the son and dived down towards Goblin Black Ops with great force. Prowler was engulfed in a spiraling ball of yellow light with orange streaks coming out. Shin's opponent was surprisingly calm about losing his monster. According to his calculations he was still going to have Life Points to spare. And he still had another Goblin Black Ops in his hand.

' _Good effort, but in the end I'm still the winner.' _Shin's opponent looked at his Duel Disk to double check the calculations. He would still have two hundred Life Points in the end. But according to his D-Gazer...Shin's monster has 4400 ATK. " Y-Your...what's happened to your monster?"

" There's a reason why my monster costs 1000 Life Points to summon. Because he's an awesome monster. When he destroys one monster on the turn he's summoned he gains 1000 ATK points." It was the end of the duel and Shin's opponent had the perfect card to play next. How could a duelist using someone else's deck beat him. Prowler ripped through Goblin Black Ops taking out the last of his Life Points. Shin's opponent fell on his knees and sobbed. " Great game. Now I'm going to give this deck back to Yuma and then I'm going home. See you tomorrow."


	4. Chapter 4

**A lot of you are going to hate this chapter. For one it doesn't have any dueling. Another is it's short. The third is the surprise that will make all fan boys and girls crazy. Just kidding. Zexal only has one of those and it's me. I did this chapter by myself but information came from 90sboy. Please enjoy.**

* * *

" Here's your cards back, Yuma Tsukumo. I removed all my cards and put all your cards back where I found them." Shin using Yuma's deck made him feel cold and icy. If he summoned Baby Tiragon he was going to freak.

" Why do you keep using my deck?" His only complaint to the multiple times Shin used his deck.

" Your deck is the only one that works with my cards," Shin said showing his XYZ monsters to Yuma and Phoenix of the Blue Flames. " I don't have enough cards to make a deck and yours fit perfectly with mine. It's like a mix of pedestrians with gods. It's like we have a connection."

" You should really use your own cards," Yuma said loudly. Shin backed away a little when Yuma talked that loudly. " If you can't than borrow other people's cards."

" That's something I want to talk to you about. Today I was going to tell you about a deck my father gave me. Well, he hasn't given me a deck yet. He says it wasn't a necessity for me to have it. He said it is something I must earn. Yesterday he said I could finally have my own deck. He said I stopped being arrogant—"

" You're still arrogant!" Yuma interrupted.

" Only because I have to keep using your deck. I wouldn't have to if the same guy didn't challenge me over and over again." Shin responded without hesitation. " He said he's sorry about the things that have prevented me from having a real deck. He says when I get home, at eight o'clock because they have to prepare for the ceremony, I will get my own cards. Right now it's..." Shin rolled his sleeves away to look at his watch. " Six-fifteen. Only an hour and forty-five more minutes to go."

" Your father must be some kind of magician if he expects his son to leave the house to decorate it for a weird ceremony," Yumi murmured. Shin heard him and responded with a smile.

" My father actually works in a grocery store. You know that small grocery store built for a very rich old woman so she could get her groceries and barely have to leave her house? The one with a memorial outside that tells you she used to live next door. Obviously, there's roses on that memorial."

" I can't believe I'm asking this, but what does your mother do?" Yuma was frightened to hear the answer. It would continue the onslaught of questions bombarding inside him trying to understand Shin.

" She works in a daycare." That was interesting. Yuma was actually glad she worked at a daycare. "She mostly does kids from ages of four to twelve. Those kids in the daycare like sugar, but she doesn't give them sugar so they're a little mellow. One time a girl ate the raspberry pie on the counter and my mother thought she had blood on her mouth. It was so funny an eleven year old girl videotaped it."

Yuma was lost, in more than one way, and not because he wasn't the brightest student in his school. His parents were normal people. They didn't sound like duelists; why wouldn't they want their son to have a deck. In his current situation a boy walked up to them. The boy was wearing a gray hoodie. He had cream white skin and purple eyes. One hand was reaching into his right pocket and the other one had a duel disk strapped around his arm. He was a duelist. Yuma heard the sound of music in his pockets. The boy turned off the music and smiled.

" Shin. What's up man? How have you been?" The boy exclaimed seeing Shin standing next to Yuma. Yuma looked at Shin and quickly turned to the boy.

" You two know each other?" Yuma said loudly. His voice echoed in Shin's ear and shorted out his deaf perception.

" YES!" Shin yelled finding himself unable to control the volume of his voice. He waited until everyone stopped talking, took a deep breath and said, " He was a guy who challenged me to duel. I used your deck. He was good but I beat him. Thanks for letting me use the cards back then."

" We become good friends Yuma. We talk about duel strategies and—"

" Wait," Shin interrupted. " How do you know this guys name is Yuma? Do you guys know each other?"

"Of course. Believe it or not I'm Yuma's twin brother TJ Tsukumo." TJ put down his hood. It was the first time Shin ever saw him without his hood on. His hair was big with downwards spikes instead of Yuma's doo. He had one prominent giant hair strand like Yuma's pink strand but his was gray instead one.

" You have a twin brother, Yuma? Why didn't you ever tell me?" Shin asked.

" Because I don't even know you. We don't hang out. The only reason I do know you is from you keep borrowing my deck for you duels."

" I have a wonderful idea," TJ said. " Yuma, let's have a duel."

" You want to duel your own brother?" Shin asked TJ who immediately put on his Duel Gazer. His duel disk flashed on with multiple lights glowing in a visor.

" Oh course. He's my brother and I want to duel him." Yuma immediately turned on his Duel Gazer and activated his duel disk. He could hear someone breathing behind him and recognized him immediately as Astral.

" Does your brother use Number Monsters?" Astral the blue ghost over his shoulder asked.

" I don't think so. Last time he didn't even have XYZ monsters. It was only fusion and normal monsters."

" Then I'm not needed here. After that loss you suffered against Kita, you'll probably want another nap after this."

Yuma and TJ started with 4000 life points like in any duel. Yuma was smiling and so was TJ. Yuma had a bunch of new cards he wanted to show TJ. If only he could summon his Number cards. It was just a regular, fun duel they were having.

" If you ever have trouble picking a card just tell me and I'll pick it for you," TJ smirked; Yuma scoffed.

" I'm going to win, TJ."


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry for the long wait. I asked Matarra if the author would like to help me, said yes and helped me write the chapter but couldn't send me what she wrote because she was on vacation. I hope you like it and will review. And thank you Matarra.**

XXX

Yuma grinned, "Alright! Let's go! I summon Goblindberg in attack mode! I then activate its special ability, which allows me to summon another monster that is level four or lower from my hand-"

"Yuma. I am fairly familiar with your deck. I know exactly what Goblindberg does," TJ deadpanned.

"Oh, right," Yuma said sheepishly, "Anyway, I special summon Gogogo Golem! I use these two monsters to build the overlay network! I xyz summon Number 39: Utopia!"

"I activate the quick spell card, Offerings to the Doomed. It allows me to destroy one face up monster, but skip my next draw phase." TJ stated.

Utopia exploded in a shower of light as Yuma yelped, "No fair!"

"Actually, Yuma, it is quite fair. I must say, your brother is a remarkable duelist, destroying your monster already when he himself has not taken a turn yet." Astral commented.

"Shut it, Astral!" Yuma hissed.

"...what did you say, Yuma?" TJ asked.

"Nothing!" Yuma called.

"It looked like you were talking to someone," TJ said, sounding suspicious.

"I set two cards facedown and end my turn!" Yuma said hastily.

TJ frowned, "Don't try to change the subject! You know, let's put some weight on this duel. If I win, you have to tell me 100% honestly who you were talking to, even if it was yourself! And if I find out you lied later, you'll really pay for it. If you win, I will never bring up the subject again, deal?"

Yuma hesitated, then, "Alright! But I'm gonna win!"

"Fat chance," TJ smirked, "I set a monster then I set one card facedown. I then activate Tremendous Fire! This card deals-"

"1000 points of damage to me and 500 to you, hah! See how it feels?" Yuma cheered as Astral facepalmed.

TJ rolled his eyes, "Fair enough, so as you said, I take 500 and you take 1000 damage to your life points!"

TJ: 3500

Yuma: 3000

"I end my turn, your move, bro." TJ said with a grin.

"Alright! I draw! I summon Gogogo Giant (2000/0)!" Yuma cried.

I attack your facedown monster!" Yuma cried. The card was flipped face up to reveal Shaddoll Dragon (1900/0).

Gogogo Giant destroyed Shaddoll Dragon, sending it to the graveyard. "Because Gogogo Giant attacked, it is changed to defense mode. I set one card facedown and end my turn!"

"'Kay, I draw!" TJ cried, "I summon Shaddoll Hound then I activate Monster reborn to bring back Shaddoll Dragon!"

"Oh, wow!" Shin cried, "Two level four monsters! Xyz summon here we come!"

"I...He don't...doesn't use xyz monsters," TJ and Yuma said in unison.

"Then what...?" Shin started.

"I activate the spell card Polymerization! I fuse Shaddoll Dragon and Shaddoll Hound to fusion summon El Shaddoll Winda (2200/800)!"

"I attack Gogogo Giant with El Shaddoll Winda!"

Gogogo Giant exploded and Yuma looked on in shock. "Aw, come on!"

"I end my turn! Your move," TJ said with a grin.

"Alright, I draw!" Yuma cried. He glanced at the card he got. "Woohoo! Kattobingu!"

"You have such a good poker face," TJ said sarcastically.

"Yuma, what is poker?" Astral asked.

"Later!" Yuma hissed at Astral, "I activate the trap Raigeki Break! I discard one card, then I destroy one card you control. I discard Gogogo Golem and destroy El Shaddoll Winda!"

"Darn!" TJ huffed, "Why didn't I have a good trap in place again?"

"Maybe because your deck is a bit imbalanced?" Shin suggested.

"No, I mean, I have a trap in my hand, but I didn't set it," TJ explained sheepishly.  
"Why the heck not?" Shin asked.

"I kinda forgot..." TJ noticeably winced.

"...okay," Shin commented, making TJ flush a deep shade of red.

"Yuma, your brother is quite like you," Astral said.

"...I can't tell if that was a compliment or an insult," Yuma said.

"It was neither, merely an observation," Astral replied.

Yuma gave the blue alien a glare, then turned his focus back to the duel. "Now I summon Gagaga Girl! Then I special summon Gagaga Kid! Due to its special ability, I can change its level to match that of another Gagaga monster on my field! I use the level three Gagaga Girl and the level three Gagaga Kid to build the overlay network! I xyz summon Melomelody the Brass Djinn (1400/1600)!"

"Yuma," Astral asked, "Due to Gagaga Girl's effect, you could've reduced El Shaddoll Winda's attack points to zero, therefore destroying it and dealing damage to TJ. Why did you choose to use that trap and end up discarding a card instead?"

"Because I know that monster, Astral!" Yuma hissed, "If I attacked it with Melomelody, it would destroy it as well. El Shaddoll Winda destroys any special summoned monster that does battle with it during the damage step."

Ah," Astral was silent for a second, then, "How many times did you fall for that effect before-?"

"More times than I'm proud of, Astral, more times than I'm proud of," Yuma muttered.

"If you're done talking to yourself!" TJ yelled.

Yuma jumped. "Right! Now I activate the spell, Ego Boost! This card-"

"Raises the attack of one monster by 1000 attack points," TJ grinned.

"Yeah," Yuma said with a pout, "I activate Melomelody's special ability! By using one overlay unit, she can attack twice during the battle phase!"

TJ's eyes widened. "...what?!"

Yuma grinned, "Here it comes, Melomelody attack TJ directly!

TJ: 1100

"Now she attacks once more! Kattobingu!" Yuma cheered as Melomelody readied her trumpet to blast TJ once more.

TJ braced himself as Melomelody's attack hit him and he was thrown back.

TJ: 0

Yuma: WIN!

TJ hissed and pealed himself off the ground. "Dang it, well, great duel, Yuma! Later!"

"Hey, where are you going?" Yuma asked.

"I just remembered that I kinda have some history homework... due tomorrow... and it was a big project and I might not have started it yet," TJ said, wincing.

"Oh, well see you later, TJ!" Yuma said grinning.

"Yuma, didn't you also have a large history project that was assigned a few weeks ago?" Astral asked curiously.

Yuma's eyes widened, "Aw, CRAP! Bye Shin, gotta go!" Yuma tore off, making Astral sweatdrop.

"Observation number 12: Yuma is terrible about completing his work," Astral sighed.

* * *

Shin bounced up and down in excitement. Yes! I am FINALLY getting my own deck!  
"Shin, calm down, you can have your new deck AFTER you finish your broccoli," his mother said, fighting back a laugh.

Shin wolfed down his broccoli in one bite. "Okay, ate it! Deck now, deck now!"

"Wait for the rest of us to finish eating, Shin."

"Please! I need a deck! Can't... last... much... longer..." Shin fake gasped for air and fell on the floor twitching.

His father rolled his eyes and handed Shin a small box. "Here you go, Shin, use it well. And never duel for an evil purpose."

Shin opened it up and immediately started shuffling through the cards. "YES!"

"I'm glad your excited, but it's bedtime," his mother said.

"Five more minutes!"

"No, get to bed."

"I don't wanna..."

"One, two-"

It was with almost inhuman speed that Shin ran into the bathroom, brushed his teeth for two seconds if that, raced into his room, and jumped in bed. As he snuggled under the covers, he put himself to sleep with the lullaby of the chant, "I got a deck! I got a deck!"


	6. Chapter 6

**This is the last chapter Matarra and I have written together. It's short but we stopped when we decided to have a duel. Normally I like to have my stories be over one thousand words so I decided to mention a few more thing in the author's note, not that anyone is actually reading this, but in case you are I would like to point out yes I made mistakes in the duel and ritual but it's not like it's the first time in a Yu-Gi-Oh duel mistakes were made, I mean have you watched the original series in the first season. **

**I was thinking I could finish all my stories but maybe it's best to go on hiatus to work on stories that could become books (which seems like a long time unless I work with someone). This is just a warning in case any of you read my other stories to be prepared. I write on paper, I write in script, I write script on top and dialogue on the bottom, and then I make it a story. That takes a long time which is one of the reason I asked Matarra for help. And I feel bad for the people I ask to be my next co-author. Thank you for reading this, and thank you Matarra. I love you like a sibling. **

XXX

Shin blinked and looked around. "Huh? Where am I- whoa, what the hell?!"

He was flying on some strange giant bird and as soon as he realized this fact, he grasped the feathers tightly. He let go immediately when the bird squawked in protest.

"Sorry! Sorry! But where the heck am I?" Shin asked. The bird didn't respond(of course not, it's a bird) but just kept flying. Shin ran his fingers through his hair. "Dang it, I have to be dreaming. That's it, I'm totally dreaming. Well, if I'm dreaming, then all I have to do is jump off and I'll wake up before I hit the ground."

He leaned over to look at the ground and saw he was much farther up than he was comfortable with. "O- on second thought, I think I'll just stay here. Just in case I'm not dreaming. I'm totally not scared! Not at all!" He threw his arms around the bird's neck and held on for dear life. The bird swooped down and Shin shut his eyes tight.

After a while, Shin cracked open his eyes and saw the two of them were flying through the streets of Heartland. Shin looked around and was surprised to see no people.

"Well, that tears it, I'm dreaming. Totally dreaming." Shin said out loud. Suddenly the bird landed on the ground and Shin flew off its back and face-first onto the ground. He spat out a wad of dirt and grime.

"Ow! Wait that didn't hurt... yeah, totally dreaming," he turned back to the bird, "Screw you, feather-brain!"

The bird chirped in response then flew away. Suddenly Shin heard a cold laugh behind him and he whirled around to see a guy with a hood shadowing his face.

And three eyes.

And a skull for a face.

Not creepy in the slightest. Nope. And Shin definitely did not scream like a little girl when he saw the creepo. At all.

"Wh- what the hell are you?!" Shin whimpered.

"That was quite a loud scream, little one," the man, or creature, sneered.

"H- hey, shove off!" Shin whimpered and found he had a duel disk on his arm. "I- if you don't leave or tell me who you are, then I'll have to duel you!"

"Duel me? Oh little one, you do not wish to do that, but if you insist on an early death, I can certainly comply," a duel disk that appeared skeletal with a blood red glow around it appeared on his arm.

"B- bring it on, weirdo!" Shin cried, "Duel gazer, set!"

"Weirdo? That may be the most intelligent insult you have ever said."

"Duel me or beat it!" Shin cried.

"How about you beat it? Time to wake up, little one. Don't worry, we'll meet again. And at that time I will properly crush you,"

despite having no lips, Shin had a feeling the man was smirking. He opened his mouth to respond then found himself in bed screaming.

Shin panted and ran his fingers through his hair. What... was THAT? No, it was just a bad dream. Just a bad dream. He settled back down and his last thought before he fell back asleep was a desire to have dueled that creepo.

Shin bounced up and down in class, feeling his deck inside his pocket. He kept glancing at the clock, counting the hours and minutes until it was time to duel, even though school had just started.

Finally the teacher strode through the door with an unfamiliar boy in tow. "Class! We have a new student today! His name is..." the teacher turned to the boy.

"Doesn't matter," the boy muttered and promptly sat down at an empty desk. The teacher blinked for a few moments then shrugged and proceeded to begin the day's lesson.

After what felt like forever to Shin, it was duel time. This was the time of day that the school had set aside for students to duel each other. He grinned and looked around for someone fun to duel. Maybe Yuma, or TJ, or-

"Duel me," Shin turned to see the new student staring at him with a duel disk on his arm and his duel gazer already on. Or this guy.

"Alright! Duel disk, set! Duel gazer, activate!" Shin cheered as he set up. "DU-"

"Wait," the boy said. He knelt down and tied a red bandanna around his leg. "Duel!"


	7. Chapter 7

**This chapter was written by Zeladious and 4fireking. Our collaboration was short but with her help I was able to complete this chapter. It wasn't me alone that changed the style of the duels. I'm still playing on fixing the mistakes in my chapters later.**

XXX

Since the boy was new to Yuma's school he had the first move. He drew a card. "I set a monster facedown and set two cards facedown and end my turn."

Everyone watched as Shin started his turn picking up one card. This was the first time he looked at his cards. He was impressed with the attribute his parents gave him.

"I summon Alexandrite Dragon (2000/100)."

Placing the card on his field a dragon of ( color) scales and yellow eyes. It was glowing with yellow light. It looked pretty to the girls watching. To the boys it looked like a scary dragon. Shin pointed his hand at the monster facedown and told his monster to attack.

"Alexandrite Dragon, attack! Imperial's Wrath!"

Alexandrite Dragon's mouth charged with light forming into a ball. He took a deep breath and fired a blast of light at him. Shin expected him to activate one of his face downs, but his attack went through. His face down monster was a snowman with sticks for hands with gloves.

"You activated the effect of Snowman Eater," the new kid said. "When he's flipped face-up I can destroy a monster on your side of the field. And I activate the trap card (Waboku). This will prevent Snowman Eater from being destroyed by battle."

Alexandrite Dragon's blast hit Snowman Eater but it only went to the right instead of destroying him. Snowman Eater's mouth grew bigger and he swallowed Alexandrite Dragon in his mouth. Alexandrite Dragon screamed in pain before he exploded into pixels.

"That was no surprise," Astral said watching Shin lose his monster. "Everyone knows someone facedown monsters can destroy one monster."

"Why did he keep a zero attack power monster stay on the field?" Yuma asked.

"To Xyz Summon. It's an obvious strategy. Keep a level three to summon a level three."

_'Damn it.' _Shin thought to himself. This new kid's gaining the upper hand on him.

"Turn end."

He couldn't believe that his Monster would get wiped out so easily. Then again, it wouldn't be fun that way, if he were the one to gain the upper hand instead.

"My turn."

The new kid stoically spoke, drawing a card from his Deck, examining his hand shortly, then started his play. "I summon Tour Guide From the Underworld! When she is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon 1 Level 3 Fiend-Type monster from my hand or Deck, but its effects are negated, also it cannot be used as a Synchro Material." As if by automatic, a card in the middle prodded out, revealing it to be Possessed Dark Soul, adding it to his current field.

"It's coming!" Astral spoke in awareness.

"I overlay Snowman Eater and Tour Guide From the Underworld!"

The two Monsters that were called out turned to xyz materials, with the overlay network starting to construct below them.

"Shatter the foes before your very might. Appear before me, Chronomaly Crystal Chrononaut!"

The overlay network soon exploded, revealing a purple insect-like head, a constructed human-like body with a black circular-like shape with a mirror-like in the middle of it, its black patterns covering the front of its body until its knees, with both of its arms and legs being robotic-like, with wings at the back.

"Battle! Chronomaly Crystal Chrononaut, direct attack!"

The monster's eyes turned glowing red as it tired two beams of red light at Shin. In just one attack Shin's Life Points dropped over half in one attack. It was embarrassing to take an attack like this in front of all the student spectator.

"It's a shame I couldn't see more of your deck," the new student had a pitiful look on his face. "Alexandrite Dragon was a good card. Possessed Dark Soul will attack you directly." [4000/700]

"My turn. Draw!"

Adding the drawn card to his hand, he examined them closely, formulating a plan to get back at the new kid. He was in dire straits, and his life points is now merely 700.

_'This is bad. I need to make a comeback. But what can I do...?' _Shin snapped back to reality from his thoughts, when he saw a particular card at the very corner of his left side. ' _This card is...!'_

Looking back at the drawn card he placed in the middle, he smiled lightly to himself.

"I activate Realm of Light!"

Placing the card to the Field Zone on his duel disk when the side compartment opened, closing back by itself after inserting said card, the view around them turned from plain virtual surrounding to a Colosseum, where virtual people cheered on from within, with the light from above, beaming down towards the duel itself.

"I then activate Lightsworn Sanctuary!"

Slotting the card to the Spell/Trap Zone, the continuous card beamed out, as if in continuous play, provided if conditions are met accordingly.

"Next, I play Charge of the Light Brigade! This card allows me to send the top 3 cards of my Deck to the Graveyard!"

The Spell Card, "Charge of the Light Brigade", appeared from a virtual network-like from the ground as a wolf, whose had yellow striking on its head, and had an anchor sign on each side of its forearm, appears before Shin's eyes from the said card, and howled upwards, as if howling to the moon itself, with Shin himself placing the top three cards of his Deck to the Graveyard Zone, located on the middle of his Duel Disk. He then placed the Spell Card to the Graveyard Zone once that was done.

"Due to effects of "Realm of Light" and "Lightsworn Sanctuary", I gain six Shine Counters!" [Shine Counter: 6]

His next move however, was already planned then.

"Furthermore, I add one Level 4 or lower "Lightsworn" monster from my Deck to my hand."

He took out his Deck from the Deck Zone this time, taking out one "Lightsworn" monster, and added it to his hand, placing the Deck back, reshuffling by itself once inserted in. He had added "Jain, Lightsworn Paladin" to his hand.

_'Alright.'_ He thought to himself.

"Next, I summon "Jain, Lightsworn Paladin"!"

Placing the card onto the Monster Zone, Jain materialised, revealing to have worn a Paladin suit from top to bottom, carrying a steel sword and a shield representing the Mark of the Lightsworn, with Jain's white short hair flowing slightly against the wind, if there's even one, as the cape made Jain feeling more majestic. ORIGINAL - [1800/1200] SHINE COUNTERS EFFECT - [2400/1200]

"Thanks to the Shine Counters, it's more than enough to take out your monster! Jain, attack Chronomaly Crystal Chrononaut! Jain's effect activates! When this card attacks an opponent's monster, it gains 300 ATK during the Damage Step!"

"I activate Chronomaly Crystal Chrononaut's effect! Once per turn, when this card is targeted for an attack, I can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; this turn, this card cannot be destroyed by battle or by card effects, also my opponent takes any Battle Damage I would take from battles involving this card!"

The new kid spoke, as one of the overlay unit was sent to the middle of its chest, glowing slightly before it died down at that instant. But Shin had already thought of a counter for it, though he was actually surprised by Chrononaut's card effect.

"I activate Lightsworn Sanctuary's effect! If I control a "Lightsworn" card(s) on my field that would be destroyed by a card effect, I can remove 2 Shine Counters for each of those "Lightsworn" card(s) instead." [Shine Counter: 4] Jain's Stats - [2200/1200]

The attack that was reflected back dissipated upon an inch of contact with Shin's monster, making him sigh in relief.

' _That was really close. I would have lost there and then if it weren't for this card...'_

" You may have saved your monster but when it's my turn your going to lose," the new kid said. The odds were he was just joking, but in case he wasn't Shin needed a card to protect him and Jain.

"I set a card, and end my turn."

He placed the card face-down in the Spell/Trap Zone as the said card materialised, dissipating shortly afterwards. [Set Card: Skill Successor]

"My turn."

The new kid draws his card, only taking a mere glance at it, but it wasn't the card he needed just yet, though his facial expression stayed stoically in place.

"I activate "Forbidden Lance"! This targets 1 face-up monster on the field; until the End Phase, it loses 800 ATK, but is unaffected by the effects of other Spell/Trap Cards. I target Jain for this effect!"

Jain groaned as its strength is decreasing, but eventually held on, even though it fell to a knee. [1400/1200]

' _This is bad!'_ Shin thought to himself, looking over at his monster in worry.

"Chrononaut, attack Jain!"

"Trap, activate!"

Just merely at the command of attacking, Shin quickly shouted out, revealing the Set Card to be "Skill Successor" to the opponent.

""Skill Successor" allows me to target 1 face-up monster I control; it gains 400 ATK until the end of this turn. I target Jain!" [1800/1200]

Both of the monsters created an explosion upon the impact, leaving only Chrononaut intact, however, as it returned to its position. [4000/400]

"What can you do with a measly 400 life points? You're good as finished! Soul, direct attack!"

"I activate the effect of "Necro Gardna" from my graveyard! I banish this card to negate your attack!"

"Damn it." The new kid muttered to himself, though Shin heard it loud and clear on his end.

"I end my turn."

Relieved to have survived the attack, he let out a sigh.

"My turn. Draw!"

Adding the newly drawn card to his hand, he gasped loudly at it.

' _This card is...!'_

He smirked to himself. He knew what to do now.

"I summon Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress!"

Slamming the card to the Monster Zone, a portal emerged from below, revealing a long black haired lady wielding a golden staff, wearing a circlet on her hand and dressed from top to bottom, her white cape flowing ever slightly. [1700/200] SHINE COUNTERS EFFECT - [2100/200]

"I activate Lyla's effect! I can target 1 Spell/Trap Card my opponent controls; this card's battle position cannot be changed until the end of my next turn, also I change this card from face-up Attack Position to face-up Defense Position, and if I do, I can destroy your set card!"

The new kid had to praise Shin for not forgetting his other set card.

"Thought you had forgotten that. I should commend on your spirit."

The said card exploded on impact once Lyla hurled a small light ball with her staff in hand, moving to a defense position after.

"I activate Beckoning Light! This allows me to discard my entire hand, then for each card I discarded to the Graveyard by this effect, I add 1 LIGHT monster from my Graveyard to my hand."

Shin discarded his two remaining cards to the graveyard, and as the said cards were of LIGHT attribute, the two cards from his graveyard came out facedown, as he picked them up, viewing his said cards taken from the graveyard. He soon nodded to himself.

"And now...I special summon Judgment Dragon!"

Roaring to life as its name was called, the white majestic dragon landed, roaring lightly once more as to intimidate its foes before its might. [3000/2600]


End file.
